Container for dishes



United States Patent 3,211,282 CONTAINER FOR DISHES Russell J.Hennessey, St. Paul, Minn, assignor to Waldorf Paper Products Company,St. Paul, Minn., a corpora tion of Minnesota Filed Jan. 9, 1963, Ser.No. 250,323 3 Claims. ((11. 20646) This invention relates to animprovement in containers for dishes and the like and deals particularlywith a container which may be used to protect a dish or similar objectduring transportation and storage.

Many plates such as souvenir plates are specially designed or paintedplates and the like are sold as individual units. In such a case, it isessential that a means be provided for packaging the plates so that theywill not be broken during shipment. An object of the present inventionresides in the provision of a container for a disk-like object such as aplate in which the plates may be displayed, and yet which may serve asan effective protection during shipment.

An object of the present invention resides in the provision of acontainer of the type in question cut and creased to provide a hollowrectangular post of corrugated board or the like at each corner of arectangular container. The inner adjoining surfaces of these posts areapertured or notched to accommodate angularly spaced areas of theperiphery of the dish or plate. The apertures are so located to hold thedish or plate from vertical movement, as well as to hold the object frommaterial movement in a radial direction. Thus the dish or plate is veryeffectively contained. In view of the fact that the posts are hollow,the dish or plate may be supported so that virtually the entire surfacethereof is visible when the top of the container is open.

An added feature of the present invention resides in the provision of acontainer of the type described which may be easily and quickly set upto contain the product. In preferred form, the ends of the extensionswhich are located at opposite ends of each side panel are secured inoverlapping relation. By providing a simple form, certain portions ofthe flap structure of the extensions may be folded upwardly while theside wall panels are flat and on a plane with the bottom panel. One ofthe flap structures on one of the side walls may be set up and folded tooverlie the bottom panel. One side of the dish to be packaged may beinserted through the apertures or slots in this structure. The oppositeflap structure may then be folded up to swing the notches or aperturestherein into engagement with the plate to complete the arrangement. Theend walls and the cover flaps secured thereto may be folded and gluedautomatically if it is so desired.

These and other objects and novel features of the present invention willbe more clearly and fully set forth in the following specification andclaims.

In the drawings forming a part of the specification:

FIGURE 1 is a perspective view of the closed container in readiness forshipment.

FIGURE 2 is a perspective View of the open container, the contents beingomitted to show the container construction.

FIGURE 3 is a horizontal sectional view through the container just abovethe dish or similar object, sho'wing the manner in which the dish issupported.

FIGURE 4 is a vertical sectional view through the container, thecontents being illustrated in dotted outline.

FIGURE 5 shows the container in flat form after the extensions onopposite ends of the side walls have been overlapped and securedtogether.

FIGURE 6 is a diagrammatic view of the blank from which the container isformed.

The container is indicated in general by the letter A, and the containeris particularly designed to hold a generally circular or disk-shapedobject such as the dish B. As indicated in FIGURES 3 and 4 of thedrawings, the structure is such as to hold the marginal edges of thedish in spaced relation to the walls of the container, and also acts tosuspend the dish B between the top and bottom panels of the container.The container A includes a bottom panel 10 rigidly connected alongparallel fold lines 11 and 12 to end Walls 13 and 14 respectively. Inthe following description, certain wall panels have been described asend wall panels while the right angularly arranged panels are describedas side wall panels. This specific description may be consideredsomewhat misleading, as where the article contained is round, the bottompanel is substantially square. However, the terminology to simplify thedescription, and to distinguish between the pairs of walls.

The end walls 13 and 14 are hingedly connected along their upper edgesby fold lines 15 and 16 to top or cover panels 17 and 19 respectively.In the particular arrangement illustrated, the panel 19 is substantiallythe full width and length of the container while the other panel 17 issomewhat narrower. In order to insure the fact that at least portions ofthe surfaces of the panels may be in proper face contact, the top panel17 may be provided with an extra score line 20 which will insure that atleast the end section 21 of the top panel may fold flat against theupper surface of the panel :19.

Side walls 22 are hinged to the side edges of the bottom panel 10 alongparallel fold lines 23. In view of the fact that both side wallstructures are identical, the same identifying numbers are used. Theends of the side walls 22 are connected along parallel fold lines 24 and25 to rectangular end wall flaps 26 and 27. These end wall flaps 26 and27 are hingedly connected alon'g fold lines 29 and 30 to first partitionpanels 31 and 32, respectively. The first partition panels 31 and 32 arehingedly connected along fold lines 33 and 34- to second partitionpanels 35 and 36, respectively. The second partition panels 35 and 36are hingedly connected along fold lines 37 and 39 to anchoring flaps 4tand 41, respectively. The anchoring flaps 41 are preferably providedwith short downwardly projecting lips or tongues 42 designed to extendinto slots cut into the side edges of the bottom panel 10 by U-shapedcut lines as illustrated in FIGURE 6.

In preferred form, the flap extensions are folded along the fold line 25so that the anchoring flap 41 overlies the end wall flap 26 of theopposite extension. The extensions are also folded along the fold lines33 and the anchoring flaps 40 are adhered in face contact with theanchoring flaps 41. During this operation, the end wall 14 and top panel19 may also be folded along the fold line 12 if it is desired todecrease the area of the blank during storage.

A slot or aperture 44 extends through the partition flaps 31 and 35,usually extending an equal distance on opposite sides of the fold line33. A slot or aperture 45 is also provided in the partition flaps 32 and36, intersecting the fold line 34. The slots 44 and 45 are properlyshaped and properly located to support the dish or plate B in properlyspaced relation to the top and bottom panels and to suspend the object Bout of contact with the outer walls of the container.

In usual practice, the two extensions connected to each side wall 22 maybe folded into generally rectangular form while the side walls 22 are onthe plane of the bottom panel 10. The wall structure with the assembledflaps may then be hinged upwardly so that two of the corner posts extendupwardly from the bottom panel 10. One side of the object B may then beinserted into the apertures 44 and 45. The opposite flap structure maythen be set up in the same manner, and the opposite wall swung upwardly,the opposite edge of the plate being guided into the apertures 44 and 45therein. The end walls 13 and 14 are then folded upwardly, the top panel19 folded down, and the opposite top panel 17 folded down over the panel19, with the end portion 21 adhered in face contact thereto.

In accordance with the patent statutes, I have described the principlesof construction and operation of my improvement in Containers forDishes, and while I have endeavored to set forth the best embodimentthereof, I desire to have it understood that changes may be made withinthe scope of the following claims without departing from the spirit ofmy invention.

I claim:

1. A support for a disk-like member including a sheet of paperboard cutand creased to provide,

a rectangular bottom panel,

side wall panels hinged to two edges of said bottom panel and extendingupwardly therefrom,

an extension on the end edges of each side wall panel and including endwall flaps at right angles to said side wall panels and overlying theend edges of said bottom panel, first partition flaps on said end wallflaps extending parallel to said side wall panels, second partitionflaps on said first partition flaps and extending parallel to said endwall flaps, and

anchoring flaps parallel to and substantially in face contact with saidside Wall panels, and secured together in overlapping relation,

connected slots in the connected edges of said partition flaps in spacedrelation to said bottom panel,

a disk-like member having angularly spaced areas extending through saidslots,

end wall panels hinged to the end edges of said bottom panel andextending upwardly therefrom outwardly of said end wall flaps, and

cover panels foldably connected to the upper edges of two opposed wallpanels and secured in overlapping relation.

2. The structure of claim 1 and in which said cover panels are hinged tosaid end wall panels.

3. A support for a dish and the like, including a rectangular bottompanel,

a pair of side walls hingedly connected to two parallel sides of saidbottom panel,

an extension on the opposite ends of each side wall cut and creased toinclude in series, an end wall flap, a first partition wall fiap, asecond partition wall flap, and an anchoring flap, said anchoring flapsof each extension being secured in overlapping relation,

the extensions on each side wall end being foldable forming a hollowrectangular post-like support at each corner of the bottom panel, and

said first and second partition flaps of each said extension havingconnected apertures accommodating angularly-spaced areas of a dish andthe like,

said apertures being spaced a distance sufficiently from said bottompanel for supporting the dish out of contact with said bottom panel andsubstantially parallel thereto, and end walls hinged to the remainingedges of said bottom panel and folded up outwardly of said end wallflaps.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,991,616 2/35Kondolf 229l4 2,000,158 5/35 Black et a1. 229l4 2,397,041 3 46 Pantalone22939 2,5 07,929 5 5 0 Pennebaker 229l4 2,700,499 1/55 Durand 229282,709,032 5/55 Ritchie 229l4 FOREIGN PATENTS 20,402 1/05 Austria.

20,805 9/ 07 Great Britain.

79,762 2/52 Norway.

THERON E. CONDON, Primary Examiner.

EARLE J. DRUMMOND, Examiner.

1. A SUPPORT FOR A DISK-LIKE MEMBER INCLUDING A SHEET OF PAPERBOARD CUTAND CREASED TO PROVIDE, A RECTANGULAR BOTTOM PANEL, SIDE WALL PANELSHINGED TO TWO EDGES OF SAID BOTTOM PANEL AND EXTENDING UPWARDLYTHEREFROM, AN EXTENSION ON THE END EDGES OF EACH SIDE WALL PANEL ANDINCLUDING END WALL FLAPS AT RIGHT ANGLES TO SAID SIDE WALL PANELS ANDOVERLYING THE END EDGES OF SAID BOTTOM PANEL, FIRST PARTITION FLAPS ONSAID END WALL FLAPS EXTENDING PARALLEL TO SAIDSIDE WALL PANELS, SECONDPARTITION FLAPS ON SAID FIRST PARTITION FLAPS AND EXTENDING PARALLEL TOSAID END WALL FLAPS, AND ANCHORING FLAPS PARALLEL TO AND SUBSTANTIALLYIN FACE CONTACT WITH SAID SIDE WALL PANELS, AND SECURED TOGETHER INOVERLAPPING RELATION, CONNECTED SLOTS IN CONNECTED EDGES OF SAIDPARTITION FLAPS IN SPACED RELATION TO SAID BOTTOM PANEL, A DISK-LIKEMEMBER HAVING ANGULARLY SPACED AREAS EXTENDING THROUGH SAID SLOTS, ENDWALL PANELS HINGED TO THE END EDGES OF SAID BOTTOM PANEL AND EXTENDINGUPWARDLY THEREFROM OUTWARDLY OF SAID END WALL FLAPS, AND COVER PANELSFOLDABLY CONNECTED TO THE UPPER EDGES OF TWO OPPOSED WALL PANELS ANDSECURED IN OVERLAPPING RELATION .